Nissan Will Build Juke-R for Europe

When Nissan unveiled its Juke-R concept last January in Dubai, the automaker said a production version of the hand-built, performance-tuned crossover would never see the light of day. According to Nissan's official Juke Facebook page, however, the automaker changed its mind.

The concept was created by Nissan Technical Centre Europe and built by race team RML from scratch in 22 weeks. Nissan calls the 485-horsepower compact crossover a fusion of the Juke and GT-R sports car. It did zero to 62 mph in 3.7 seconds and had a top speed of a 160 mph.

The production version will borrow the 2012 GT-R's 530-hp, turbocharged 3.8-liter V-6 engine, which is a lot faster than the already-snappy production-model Jukes, which use a 188-hp, turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder.

But don't get too excited. It looks like Nissan is only giving European customers the chance to order one of the souped-up limited-edition Jukes, and it's not talking prices yet. "The Juke-R you dream about is available on a build-to-order limited run basis. Serious buyers can email Juke-R@Nissan.co.uk," the automaker said on the Juke's Facebook page.

It's not likely to be offered in the U.S., as Juke sales here are down 8% so far this year compared with a year ago.

Watch Nissan's Juke-R video below:

Assistant Managing Editor Jennifer Geiger is a reviewer, car-seat technician and mom of three. She wears a lot of hats, many of them while driving a minivan. Email Jennifer